Sept., 1905. 



BUENO : NOTONECTA OF NORTH AMERICA. 151 



Description. — " Head rather large, notocephalic lateral margins straight, not 

 very divergent from the base ; vertex varying from one and one half to twice as wide 

 as synthlipsis. Scutellum rather shorter than in AT. undulata Say. Hemelytra van- 

 able : (1) fulvous or dark stramineous, with a broad black fascia near the apex, 

 occupying the basal two thirds of the membrane and the apex of the corium ; ( 2) vary- 

 ing from Bluish black to violet brown, the corial margins of the clavus and a broad 

 irregular blotch about the middle of the corium, fulvous or dark stramineous. Other- 

 wise like X. undulata Say." (Kirk., Rev. Not., p. 409. ) 

 Long., 9.4 to 11 mm., lat., 3.4 to 3.6 mm. 



Distribution. — United States (49). St. George. Utah (coll. mea), Humboldt 

 Lake, Nevada (coll. mea and Van Duzee), Keeler Co., California (coll. Van Duzee), 

 Arizona (coll. Heidemann and U. S. N. M. ), Los Angeles, California (U. S. N. M.), 

 Claremont, California (coll. mea), Rogue River, Oregon (U.S.N.M.). Alpine, 

 Texas (O. S. U. coll.). This bug is extremely abundant in Lake Texcoco, Mexico, 

 where its ova together with those of one or two Corixas are used as food under the 

 name of "huautle." It also occurs in Cuba, according to Kirkaldy. 



The notocephalon, in conjunction with the size and coloration, 

 will in the majority of cases serve to separate Notonecta indica Linne 

 from N. undulata Say. As to color, however, there are some indi- 

 viduals from California in the U. S. National Museum collection, that 

 of Mr. E. P. Van Duzee and my own, of the pure moonlight color of 

 V. undulata var. maculata, from which, however, they are separated by 

 the cephalic and pronotal structure. The Los Angeles N. indica grade 

 from the typical broad black band across the corium to pure white, 

 being in this somewhat similar to the variations in N undulata. The 

 average length of the insect is about 10 mm., although Kirkaldy 

 gives it as ranging to n mm., and in the National Museum there is 

 one specimen that measures only 9.4 mm. 



2. Notonecta howardii, new species. 

 /^/.—Notocephalic lateral margins curved; vertex twice as wide as synth- 

 lipsis ; base of eyes about twice as wide as synthlipsis. Pronotum four fifths broader 

 than long, humeral and lateral margins sinuate. Scutellum one fifth longer than 

 wide, not concolorous. Hemelytra clouded with black going into smoky, and with 

 a broad black band across the membrane and the apex of the corium. Apex of the 

 membrane smoky. Corium and clavus moderately clothed with a golden pubescence. 

 Membrane lobes subequal. Pedes : Intermediate femoral spur small, rather blunt, 



concolorous. 



Measurements.— Vertex, 1 mm. j synthlipsis, .5 mm.; pronotum, lat., 3.5 

 mm., long., 1. 9 mm.; scutellum, lat., 2.7 to 2.9 mm., long., 2.2 to 2.4mm. ; 

 insec't, long., 10^2 mm., lat. (pron.), 3-5 mm. i l yP es > No " > U - S " N " M " 



Described from two specimens in the U. S. National Museum, collected by Dr. 

 E. A. Mearns in Arizona. 



